-Press Information Bureau (Election Commission) General Elections are held to elect representatives for Lok Sabha after normally, every five years. Every election requires a huge amount of resources and efforts, be it planning, labour, technology, and for that matter, money. From the first Lok Sabha Elections in 1951-52 till the fifteenth in 2009, it has been a long journey for democracy. Government's expenditure on an elector has gone up manifold, twenty...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: The Election Commission has estimated that the 2014 Lok Sabha elections will cost the exchequer Rs 3,500 crore. That's about 150% more than the amount spent for the 2009 polls (Rs 1,400 crore). This does not include the expenses incurred for security and the amount political parties will spend. "Every state will send the expenditure statements to the Centre for reimbursement. The Union law ministry will peruse...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: A disability rights bill the government tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Friday has not only angered activists by ignoring many of their recommendations but also split them. Javed Abidi is leading one side that is holding protests across Delhi demanding passage of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2014, arguing that something is better than nothing. "If we oppose this bill, it will be delayed for two...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: An Indian government laboratory released a formulation of salt fortified with iodine and iron for mass consumption, calling it a tool to combat anaemia and iodine deficiency, without adequate and rigorous evidence to show that it increases blood haemoglobin levels, scientists have said. The National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Hyderabad, has shared the formulation and production technology for its double fortified salt (DFS) with seven salt-producing companies, some...

-Outlook     India lacks the political will to put an end to manual scavenging   When Meena decided to go to school, her mother identified one quite far from her home. Sharda was a manual scavenger and knew that her occupation could spell trouble for her daughter. Meena went to a government school and struggled to reach class VIII. But her ambition was cut short when teachers and the principal at the school...